Vieux Château Certan

Vieux Château Certan, Pomerol, 2003

Name: Vieux Château Certan, Pomerol
Brand: Vieux Château Certan
Price: 2435.47 GBP

90/100

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

89/100

Vinous

Available Vintages

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delivery

in bond

Broking

2003
12x75cl
DP
£2,435.47

Justerini & Brooks Tasting note

It has been a remarkable year at VCC: Aléxandre Thienpont lost 80% of his yield from the weather and his own subsequent declassification, so he will only be producing 800 cases of Grand Vin instead of the usual 4,000. What there is, though, will be sublime. We tasted separate barrels, one of Merlot (planted in 1932) that had a gorgeous clarity of sweet fruit and a stunning, silky texture with fine tannins, and one of Cabernet Franc (planted in 1948), which offered pure blackcurrant on the nose, and was restrained and classic on the palate. No Cabernet Sauvignon at all will be used in the final blend, which will favour Cabernet Franc in an 80/20 ratio. This will be an exquisite treat for those lucky enough to get a case.

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GUARANTEED PROVENANCE

Provenance in fine wine

When it comes to purchasing wine, provenance is of upmost importance. A wine’s history – where it’s sourced from and how it’s been stored – can have an enormous influence on the eventual enjoyment it provides. At Justerini & Brooks, we can trace nearly every case back to the domaine, estate or Château it originally came from; we ship from over 200 wine producers throughout the world.

Wines not bought directly from the vineyard are either sourced from trusted suppliers, with whom we share the same philosophy and rigour in buying, or from our own network of Cellarers customers. These customers’ wines are stored in optimal conditions in Octavian Corsham and, in the vast majority of cases, have been stored by us since the wine was first shipped. We do not purchase wine from auctions.

We feel it is equally important to for our customers that the case they buy and leave in storage with us is exactly the same case they subsequently have delivered. This may sound obvious and straightforward, yet we are one of very few merchants to have taken measures to ensure this.

We have created a system where every case is independent, thereby ensuring a trail of ownership and peace of mind for every customer.

The Journey

Justerinis ensures that every case of wine stored with Cellarers (Wines) Ltd has a unique identifier and customer’s name, almost unheard of in the industry as it is expensive to administer. These details are printed and placed on every case which is logged and recorded under your account name and kept in the world’s most renowned storage facility, Octavian Corsham.

This information is sent from our systems to the warehouse every day to ensure the trail of ownership is verified and upheld.

While customer reserves are stored in Corsham, our physical stocks are kept in Hoddesdon, further providing a geographical separation between customers’ wines with Cellarers and Justerinis’ own stock.

Further Reassurance

Cellarers (Wines) Ltd is a legally separate limited company from Justerini & Brooks which currently holds approximately £450 million worth of customer reserves. It is fully insured to catastrophic loss. Many merchants will state that wine in their care is fully insured, but in reality this is on an individual case basis with insufficient cover for total loss as this is prohibitively expensive. The cover provided by Octavian and Justerini & Brooks is unmatched.

Cellarers (Wines) Ltd is audited by PwC every year.

Critic Reviews

89/100

Neal Martin,

Vinous

The 2003 Vieux Château Certan, which was picked 1 to 12 September, is a success in context of a very challenging growing season, saved by its Cabernets. It has a rich nose with black cherries, allspice and light sandalwood aromas, clearly dictated but not dominated by the heat of that summer. The palate is medium-bodied and redeemed by its fine line of acidity, blessed with attractive desiccated orange rind notes towards the harmonious finish. Fine. Tasted blind over dinner in Hong Kong.

drinking window 2022 - 2030

date of review 03/2022

90/100

Robert Parker,

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

Only 850 cases were made in 2003, the lowest production ever at this estate. The blend was 80% Cabernet Franc and 20% Merlot (the Merlot was baked in the heat of June, July and August). This wine has a 92- to 93-point bouquet, but only an 87-point palate. The complexity of the Cabernet Franc component provides a gorgeous nose of new saddle leather, forest floor, sous-bois, blueberries and black currants. Lush, attractive and beautifully fruity on the attack, it fades in the mouth, and lacks the depth and texture to back up the exquisite aromatics and entry. This fully mature 2003 is a success in this appellation that experienced many difficulties. Drink it over the next few years.

drinking window 2014 - 2017

date of review 08/2014

product details

Specifications

Country:

Region:

Appellation:

Producer:

style:

Grape Variety:

Merlot Cabernet Franc

abv:

12.5%

allergen information

This product may contain sulphites. Full allergen information is available upon request, please call our Customer Relations Team on +44 (0)20 7484 6430.